The advocate magazine
by: Jeff Auer
The Advocate is an American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) monthly newsmagazine. Established in 1967, it is the oldest continuing LGBT publication in the United States.
The Advocate was first published as a local newsletter by the activist group PRIDE (Personal Rights in Defense and Education) in Los Angeles, California. The newsletter was inspired by a police raid on Los Angeles gay bar the Black Cat Tavern.
Richard Mitch (using the pseudonym "Dick Michaels") and Bill Rau (under the name "Bill Rand") joined PRIDE and, along with artist Sam Winston, transformed the newsletter into a newspaper, which they titled The Los Angeles Advocate. By Early 1968, PRIDE was struggling to stay viable and Mitch and Rau paid the group one dollar for ownership of the paper in February of that year.
In 1969 the newspaper was renamed The Advocate and distributed nationally. By 1974, Mitch and Rau were printing 40,000 copies for each issue.
It attracted the attention of David Goodstein, an investment banker from San Francisco who bought the publication in 1974. Under Goodstein's direction, The Advocate transformed into a national news magazine covering events important to the GLBT community, including the gay rights movement, art and culture. Goodstein also worked toward reducing sex-oriented advertisements in favor of more mainstream sponsors.
Starting in 2010, Here Media consolidated the distribution for The Advocate and Out magazines. The Advocate print version was combined as an insert in Out maagazine.
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